Ward's Second Chance
by RedDeath1996
Summary: Ward gets a second chance, and neither he nor anyone else has any say in it.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.

Ward couldn't believe it. He looked back at the number to make sure that he wasn't mistaken, but there it was. Phil Coulson was calling him. He looked around at his still newly risen HYDRA and debated on whether or not Coulson could have any knowledge of it. They hadn't done anything yet, though they were planning on raiding a couple of SHIELD bases for supplies, such as ammunition, guns, technology, or anything else of value. Deciding Coulson couldn't know anything about his new HYDRA, he then debated on whether or not Coulson was calling him about what he did to Agent Morse. Curiosity winning over common sense, Ward picked up the phone.

"Coulson. Didn't expect you to come calling me. What, here to demand I turn myself in?" Ward questioned, letting false arrogance to go protrude through his voice. He knew that Coulson still held the winning hand at the moment. But Ward just needed time, time to gather resources and expand his own influence.

"Trust me, Ward, if I was given any other choice right now, I would have a strike team on their way to wipe you off this Earth. Unfortunately, We need you to come in." Coulson growled out.

"You must have the wrong Ward. If you're looking for Tommy, try Massachusetts. Besides that, all other Wards are currently occupied or have passed into the afterlife." Ward replied.

"This isn't a request, Ward. It's an early warning. Someone already knows your location and will be there in a matter of seconds." Coulson sounded about as pissed about this situation as Ward was confused.

Ward couldn't help but look at the phone in his, then brought it back to his ear. "What kind of bull-" That was all Ward could say before he felt someone grab him from behind. He then went through a feeling that couldn't be related to anything besides flying backwards at sound breaking speed. He knew that it couldn't have been more than a second, but one minute he was in his hidden HYDRA bunker and the next he was in the looked around at Coulson's face.

"You were saying Ward?" Coulson spat at him. Coulson's glare seemed to become even more intense and Ward was never happier that looks couldn't kill because he would be dead ten times over.

"Shit. I believe that's the word." Ward said as he got into a stance that he could maybe put something of a fight up. He waited a bit for someone to come and try and kill him, but no one moved. "Or maybe it's more like bizarre," Ward continued when no one moved into arrest him.

"No," A voice spoke behind him. "It's called a change of fate." An old man emerged from behind him. His silver haired gave a dull shine to it, his suite couldn't have been more black along with his shirt, and wore a tie as red as fire. Ward guessed that this was the man that had transported him from his bunker to the Playground. That means that he had teleportation powers along with an even more fascinating ability to locate anyone, or at least him. Still, a man with powers was a man that was dangerous. Even without this knowledge, he radiated power.

"And who are you?" Ward challenged, letting his false arrogance set in. But the man just laughed.

"Do you think that you could possible match me, Mr. Ward? Please, I love it when humans try. I always get a kick out of it when they fail so miserably. I love kicking them while they're down." The old man said. His eyes glowing a bright orange, and a wicked smile growing on his face. "Be smart Mr. Ward, _stay where you are._ "

And like that, Ward couldn't move his feet. He knew it, didn't even need to try. His feet felt like someone put a thousand pound weight on each of his knew that the old man now dominated the conversation, but he couldn't help but feel like he had the rest of his life. Once again, he would be the underdog. "Geez, do you do this to everyone, or am I special?"

"You know, it's funny how you hide your fear. You know today is the day you die, but you're determined to keep my attention on you. Still carry feelings for your old SHIELD buddies, do you?" He leaned in real close and whispered, "You're too weak for anyone to remember." He leaned back out and watched as Ward's glare intensified.

"But today, Mr. Ward, is not your day. No today is the day I fulfill a promise make in 25 years. See 25 years from today, your son turns 18. 25 years from today, your son becomes a man. 25 years from right this moment, your son gives up his soul for you." The old man after that continued. "I guess I should introduce myself to all of you now. My name is Mephisto. You may know me as Satan, the Devil, or the Antichrist. Your strong, pure of heart, boy made a deal with me. He told me that if I were to give you a second chance at being a hero, that you would rise up to not only meet the challenge, but you would go above and beyond the call of duty. He was so sure all you needed was a second chance at making things right that he offered me his soul."

"So it's more like a bet?" Coulson interrupted.

"Yes, I guess you could call it a bet. But I feel like it's a fool's bet. His hail mary to try and save your miserable and pathetic soul from damnation. Everyone in this room knows that the only heart darker than Mr. Ward's heart here is my own. A pure soul, so willing to give it up, it should almost be a crime. Ah, but I will follow the rules of the agreement. I will give you 3 test." The old man stated, smiling his cruel smile.

"Why is it always 3 test? Why can't we just talk it out?" Ward commented jokingly.

" _Silence, Mr. Ward._ Didn't Mr. Garrett teach you better manners out in those God forsaken woods? No matter, I guess you can work on it later. Now you have to convince everyone in this building that you are a hero. Every single soul has to accept you. Or the son you will have will have a fate worse than that of Cain. He will be mine. And he will work for me." Mephisto said.

"And why would I ever agree to allow this to happen? Or how? Nobody on this team would accept this, even if I ordered it. What, are you going to just tell them to deal with it like you told Ward and me to stop moving? Because that's the only reason I could think of that would work out in Ward's favor." Coulson told the demon. Ward had to give Coulson points for not sweating under pressure.

"No, I cannot interfere." The demon said, turning to Coulson. "And truth be told, I don't care about your inner team dynamic. I don't care if you lose half your team getting him in, or if you tell no one. But somehow, someway, he has to be known as a hero to your team, including you. And as to why, my dear, naive, little mortal, is because if you don't, I will open the gates of hell onto your world and destroy everything. Now, do you really think you can take on the hordes of demons that I have at my beck and call? Because, if you think the Earth can take another invasion, then go ahead and decline Mr. Ward."

"They will never accept him." Coulson replied in an almost defeated voice. This time instead of looking at the Devil, he looked at Ward. There was nothing there but pity, something he didn't want from anyone, let alone from Coulson.

He felt his anger start to boil over, and something snapped, like rubber bands being pulled apart. and suddenly he could move. Ward tackled Mephisto to the ground. His anger had never been this strong, even with the berserker staff, and he unleashed all of his anger onto the older man. he punched and punched, feeling the skull crack under his fist. He finally stopped and looked down at his handiwork.

There, instead of the bloody mess of Mephisto, there lay Garrett. Ward freaked, going as far as to yelp and jump off of the dead body. Even Coulson seemed freaked out, whether by Ward's attack or by the body of his old friend didn't matter to Ward.

"You really are strong, Mr. Ward. But know this, I'm what the prison warden of Hell. Do you really think that your small amount of skill can take me on. But you have given me an idea." Mephisto said, as if now he was the wind. "While I cannot interfere with Coulson's team accepting you, I can give you something else. A reason that they'd want you nearby." Coulson and Ward both were looking around for the source, suddenly back to back. But neither could see where the source of the voice was coming from.

"I will give you power, Mr. Ward. Power enough even to stand up to me." And with those words, Ward's instincts told him to run. " _I will grant you domain over the element of fire_ ," And with those words, he felt every vein in his body start to boil. He screamed as the pain raced through his body. " _I will grant you the strength of a God_ ," Ward could barely register the new pain coursing throughout his body. He could feel his consciousness begin to slip away, though he still somehow managed to stay on his feet. "Good luck, Mr. Ward. Your son's fate is in your hands. Oh, and one last parting gift. _And when you need these powers the most, when you require them the most, they won't work_."

"Screw you," Ward mumbled, as he finally fell to the ground. Unconscious, he couldn't see the scared look on Coulson's face as he contemplated having to rely on Ward. "God help us." Coulson whispered.


	2. Chapter 2

Author's Note: Sorry about that guys. Hopefully, this time it will work

Disclaimer: I do not own Agents of SHIELD

"Come on, dad, rise and shine." Ward heard the voice, but for the first time in a long time, he didn't want to get up. He still felt the pain that Mephisto had caused him, still felt the fire in his veins, his regular muscles feeling like he had been run over by a train, then had a plane crash into him. In other words, it hurt to even breathe. "Come on, dad, you've been through worse."

That was when he started to register the words. Someone was calling him Dad. The simple noun being applied to him felt strange. He knew he didn't have any kid. Then he remembered why Mephisto had even decided to make Coulson work with him, why he decided to 'help' him out. His son had made a bet with the devil.

"You're an idiot." Ward just plainly stated, not even bothering to open his eyes to see where his son might be. Then he remembered that Mephisto also said that his son wasn't born until seven years from now, yet right now he sounded grown.

"Glad to know that you don't change. You were always so grumpy when you didn't have your coffee. I swear, padre, if SHIELD ever wanted to cripple you, all they had to do was find a way to stop your coffee supplier, and bam, no more Grant Ward. Instead, we get an early look at the zombie apocalypse." The voice joked. It sounded like it had a faint southern accent to it, but Ward didn't have any idea how he would get it. "Come on, lazy bum. If you open your eyes and move around a little, the pain stops. Well, maybe stop is a bit strong."

Ward couldn't help the smile on his lips. It had been a long time since anyone had been comfortable enough to joke around with him that he couldn't even keep his straight face on. Ward opened his eyes, and there as plain as day, was a teenager in a leather jacket, black tee shirt, jeans, and black combat boots. His black hair was cut military short, and he had the famous Ward cheekbones. But while Ward had brown eyes, this kid had sapphire blue eyes. And while Ward always tried to keep a straight face, the kid looked like he had just drawn on his face and could barely keep in the laughter. Their build was the same, lean but muscular. All in all, there was no denying that this was his son.

"Aren't you supposed to not be born yet?" Ward asked the young man.

"Aren't you suppose to be the leader of Hydra? Yet here you are in the Headquarters of SHIELD. And I sense that you have no plan to even take advantage of this fact." And then the kid had the nerve to laugh. "No worries, dad. I've got a plan."

"And what makes you even think that I could be hero, huh? What, do you have a mind eraser in your pockets? Because there's no way in hell I could convince someone who doesn't know me that I'm a hero, let alone Coulson's people. Did you want to give up your soul? Do you have a death wish or something?" Ward vented at his son. "I am Hydra! I am the villain in this tale! Redemption is something beyond me! I can't be what you need me to be! I'll just let you down, just like everyone else!"

"And who says you can't be a hero? SHIELD? Please, their Hydra on a white horse instead of a black one. Come on, man. That's like saying there's a difference between soldiers. The only difference is that Hydra's willing to go a bit further than SHIELD. Now come on, there's work to be done. Oh, and I guess I should introduce myself to you. I'm John Thomas Ward. Now come on. Let's explore the base while the little sheep are away." John said with a mischievous grin.

It took a minute for Ward to realize that he hadn't been looking at his environment. 'Rookie mistake,' thought Ward. He finally allowed himself to search the room. It looked like he was in the medbay. He could imagine Simmons being in here, checking on all her patients. In the next room looked to be a lab of some sort, there was chemicals, test tubes, and plenty of gadgets that he knew would be beneficial for his Hydra. But even if he somehow got his kid to grab all they could carry, he doubted that they could get out of the base alive. Then he remembered what Mephisto had given him.

"Don't even think about it," John said, not even looking back to confirm what his father was doing. "Mephisto is an asshole. And if you steal from SHIELD, then you lose, he wins and he not only takes my soul, but also the powers he had given you."

A thought occurred to Ward as he looked over at John. "How do I even know you're my son? I mean, sure you look like me, but Mephisto could easily have sent someone here just to throw me off."

"While that's a very elaborate scheme, no one, not even in Hell, wants to just follow you around to give you bad advice. Plus, who else would put up with your crap besides your son. Well, besides your wife, but hey Mom's too old to be doing shit like this." John easily replied. Then he stopped for a minute, like he was rethinking his response, then decided to add, "Don't tell Mom that I said that. She would kill me, son or not."

Ward couldn't help the curl in his lips. "So what are you doing here?" Ward asked John. "Not that I don't like seeing the reason I'm helping SHIELD in the first place, but how are you here? I doubt Mephisto would just send you back to help me out." He continued following him into a hallway. He couldn't help but analyse him. He walked around as if he owned the place, as if there wasn't at least a hundred people in this building wanting them both dead, him because of what he did, and John because of the blood they shared.

"I'm here to keep you honest, give you a focus. And as to how," He stopped and turned around, his eyes shining with pride over his unsaid accomplishment. "I raised the stakes in the bet. Now, not only does he get my soul, but I will serve twice as long as any others before me have. See most men who sell their souls, serve Mephisto until they either die or regain their own willpower. I offered him the ability to absorb my will power, making me a perfect servant for him. In exchange, Mephisto's allowed me to help you. Now, you should probably not talk around here. They might hear you in their little get together, and someone might complain about the noise we're making."

Just as John finished speaking, one of the doors on the right side of the hallway flew off it's hinges, slamming into the opposing wall. The ground beneath both the Wards feet was shaking, and he was certain he could hear the ceiling begin to crack.

"Ah, perfect. Skye is here with the welcome party." John said, smiling like a cheshire cat. "I don't think we need to tiptoe anymore. But we might want to start thinking about running in the other direction."

"Well, it's good to know you have enough common sense to run from Skye. So, was the whole bet with Mephisto just a lapse of judgement or what?" Ward joked back, surprising himself. He never thought it would not only be this easy to talk to his son, but to joke with him in the face of certain death.

"Ah, the whole thing with Mephisto wasn't so bad. Offer him your soul, and boom, nice as a kitten with a ball of yarn." John replied, still somehow retaining that smile as Skye walked through what was left of the doorway. She was in sweats and a tank top, with her hair in a ponytail. She looked furious, to say the least, her hands already fist. Power radiated off her, just like her anger.

"Skye, I said you aren't allowed to hurt him!" Coulson cried from the doorway, obviously seeing that she had lost control. Coulson looked like he hadn't slept in weeks, yet Ward knew he hadn't been out for more than a night. He had dark rings under his eyes, his usual professional demeanor was replaced with one of an exhausted man.

"Nah, Coulson. Let her have her go." John yelled out. His smile reminded him of that of a crazy person now. "I've always wondered how much of a bitch she truly was back in the day. Tell me, how does it feel to know that you still haven't taken down any Wards, yet we've taken out countless number of SHIELD agents?"

The words had an effect, though what the intentions of those words were was a mystery to Ward. He felt the power from Skye escalate along with her anger. She suddenly seemed focused though. "And who the hell are you?" She growled out.

"Why you don't know me? I'm hurt! You've wounded me, madam!" John cried out, clutching the area around his heart. Ward couldn't but think that Skye could do much more than hurt people with words and that John should be quite. "Why, I am the son of Satan. I am the prince of darkness. I am the black knight. I am the bogeyman that you check under your bed for. I am Jonathan Thomas Ward. Son of the great Grant Douglas Ward. And the murder of more than my fair share of SHIELD agents. It seems that you've come to join the growing list."


End file.
